Imagine Better Decisions

Give yourself enough time to make an informed decision. If you're up against a contract expiry deadline and know you are likely to move, make sure your colleagues prioritize the project so you avoid a costly renewal.

Ask potential suppliers how much time to budget. We often speak to organizations who want to specify a fixed Go Live date at the start of the conversation. A good quality supplier should look at your circumstances and give you an honest estimate of time to get you set up and migrate data from your current system; we estimate a minimum of twelve weeks for a standard setup.

Consider how much time you and your project team can commit. If you want to decide quickly, you should expect to work fairly intensively; if you’re struggling for time, run the project over a longer period if you can.

Allow time for contracting and forming agreements. It’s likely that your new supplier will offer you a contract and ask you to sign it before work starts. They should offer you the chance to review this agreement in advance and work with you to make sure it defines your mutual obligations. If you only see the contract for the first time once you make your decision, you risk adding several extra weeks to the process whilst your organization reviews terms.

Phase 2: Getting started

How long implementation takes depends on your current circumstances, the complexity of your organization and the approach of your new supplier. Before you start, ask for evidence of what's involved in a typical process and how long it takes. Take up references, and take time to think through the day to day impact for your organization. High quality, contemporary suppliers will do much of the heavy lifting for you, but there are decisions about your unique setup which only you can make.

• Ask prospective suppliers for a sample timeline that highlights the key stages and time periods.
• Be wary of suppliers who guarantee a Go Live date before the project starts, without knowing your circumstances or data. How can they be sure?
• Ask for implementation references. Suppliers understandably want you to know about their most recent and successful user organizations, so make sure to ask for organizations that offer a useful comparison.
• Ask about data migration. Are potential suppliers able to demonstrate that they are experienced in taking your data from point A to point B?